I Hate Men
by Ongaku Neko
Summary: Miaka wants nothing to do with men so when her friend tries to hook her up she proclaims she would rather kiss a girl than be with a man. Nurika
1. Chapter One

Woot Woot! I don't know if any Fushigi Yuugi Fans has ever read/wrote something like this before, on the count that I haven't even read a Fushigi Yuugi fanfic but here goes my try at it. I wonder if people will hate me and beat me with a stick for this... Oh well! My motto is "So Desu Ne!" I happen to be an AP lover and well, Fushigi Yuugi is so perfect for AP lovers! Want to know why? So many options! Plus, you just have to get Miaka far away from Tamahome. (um gomen M/T fans) ;

This is not my first fanfic, so at least I have some experience that way, but I do not have any experience with Fushigi Yuugi fanfics, so bear with me.

Also, last but definitely not least. I want to give big thanks to myStiCaLYia, my new beta reader! My grammar is pure crap so she is a goddess for fixing it for me! Give her love ya'll! lol

**Man: If I could see you naked, I'd die happy.  
Woman: If I saw you naked, I'd probably die laughing.**

Author - Ongaku  
Rating - T  
Genre - Comedy and Romance! This is AU! No fairy tale book!  
Summary - Miaka is a hardcore man hater. To prove that she doesn't need a man, she tells her friends that she would rather kiss a girl before ever depending on a man. They laugh at her until she finds some random girl and kisses her right on the lips! No, this is not Yuri, so don't worry. M/N pairing!

**I Hate Men**

**Chapter 1**

* * *

Miaka turned her back to her best friend.

"Miaka, why won't you come?"

"Yui, just give it up already. No is no, and I will not go on some double date with a guy I don't even know!"

Yui's eye twitched in annoyance. "But Miaka, Tamahome is a really nice guy and was looking forward to meeting you."

"Fine, if he's so nice, then you date him." Miaka replied hotly.

"Miaka! Stop that, I have a boyfriend." Yui huffed, but when Miaka still refused to look at her, she continued, "Miaka! Will you look at me?"

"No!"

"Stop being such a baby, Miaka."

Miaka turned around to face her friend. She had the look of absolute doom. "Leave me alone." Then she ran off towards her home.

But Yui wasn't through with her just yet.

* * *

Miaka slammed the entrance door to her house behind her, threw off her shoes and then leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. "Were does Yui have the right in telling me to stop acting like a baby?" she fumed.

"Miaka? Is that you?"

Miaka's head rose up to the sound of her name being called. There stood her brother with a smirk on his face.

"I knew it! Only my idiot sister can shake the entire house just by shutting the door!"

"EERR! _Keisuke!_!" Miaka growled.

But Keisuke just laughed and walked away.

"I hate men!" Miaka yelled, glad that her mother worked late tonight. Then she walked towards her room to grab a change of undergarments and pajamas before heading towards the bathroom.

Slightly subdued, she started her bath water. 'I should really calm down. After all, tomorrow's Sunday!' Miaka thought cheerfully.

When the tub was finally filled with bubbles and warm water, Miaka slipped in slowly, adjusting to its temperature.

"Ah..." Miaka sighed, "Now this is what I call relaxed." She dunked her head underwater and made a few bubbles, then brought it back up instantly. Pouring some shampoo into her hands she lathered it vigorously and began to scrub it into her hair.

After about thirty minutes of cleaning her body and just soaking in the water, Miaka figured it was time to stop turning into a prune and unplugged the drain. She stepped out of the bathtub, shivering as the cool temperature of the air touched her wet skin. Grabbing her towel quickly, she began to dry herself off so that she could get into her comfy pajamas right away.

Finally after getting dressed, brushing her hair and teeth, she exited the bathroom and made her way to the soft quilts of her bed. She fell asleep as soon as she covered herself up.

* * *

Miaka woke to the sun shining on her face from her window. She stretched, climbed out of bed, and walked to her dresser, pulling out a pair of jeans and a green blouse. Today she wouldn't have to deal with Yui and her double date plans. Yes, today was going to be a good day.

Miaka got changed quickly and then practically ran to the kitchen to get some breakfast.

"Oh, yum! It smells good in here!" She beamed.

"Pancakes." Was all her brother said, handing her a plate.

Miaka took it gladly and started stacking her plate with heaps of pancakes.

"If you don't watch it, Miaka, you're going to turn into an even bigger pig."

Miaka choose to ignore his comments for once. "Where is Mother?"

"She was at work longer than usual last night, and just barely got home 3 hours ago, so she's sleeping."

Miaka nodded thoughtfully. Her mother was a real hardass when it came to getting her to go to Jonan High School, but she did work hard to make ends meet for her and her brother. Her worthless father just up and left. She didn't know where he was and she couldn't care less.

"What are you doing today?" Miaka asked, taking another bite out of her pancakes.

"I'm off job hunting." He replied.

"I see..." Miaka contemplated what she was going to do today. There really wasn't much she could do, and she was so exhausted from taking exams that she felt justified in lying around and doing nothing.

"Well, I better be off." Keisuke said, as he put his dishes in the sink and headed towards the door. "See you later." Then he was gone.

Miaka finished up the last of her pancakes, then went to the sink and cleaned up a bit. She stretched her arms out again, trying to get the last of her sleep out, before making herself comfortable on the living room couch, flipping the T.V. on with the remote.

"Hum... nothing, nothing, nothing...there is nothing on!" Miaka mumbled to herself as she flipped through the channels. That was when the phone began to ring.

"Crap, better get that before it wakes Mom." Miaka ran to the phone quickly and picked it up, "Moshi-Moshi."

"Hello? Is Miaka home?"

"Speaking." Miaka said quickly.

"Oh! Miaka, it's me, Yui, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go out and do something today?"

Miaka thought about this. It was supposed to be her day to relax, but so far she was just really bored, and the day had hardly even begun!

"Okay, Yui! I was just wondering what I would be doing today."

"Great!" Yui replied happily on the other side of the line, "I'll meet you at the food court in the mall around ten-thirty, then!"

"Okay, see you then." Miaka said, and then hung up the phone. She looked at the clock and realized it was starting to turn nine already. "I've got a whole hour to get ready."

* * *

"Yui!" Miaka said, giggling slightly at the sight of her best friend, and waving her hand around trying to get her attention.

"Late as usual, Miaka." Yui said in an amused voice.

"I know, I know." Miaka tried to catch her breath once she finally reached Yui. "But, my mom woke up and wanted me to do something for her real quick."

Yui laughed, "Don't worry about it, I want you to meet someone."

Miaka looked up to see whom Yui was referring too and her face fell.

"Miaka, this is Tamahome. Tamahome, this is Miaka, my best friend."

The young man put out his hand towards Miaka, "Nice to meet you."

Miaka just stared at it. She couldn't believe she had just been tricked!

"Miaka." Yui hissed under her breath, while shoving her elbow into her friend's side.

"Oh!" Miaka took his hand, "I'm sorry, it's nice to meet you too." But her voice was strained; as though she would rather run away than greet him.

Tamahome, however, didn't seem to notice. He smiled brightly as he shook her hand. "I have heard a lot about you from your friend."

"Why am I not surprised?" Miaka mumbled so only she herself could hear.

"Oh, I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"Oh really?" Miaka faked enthusiasm. "I hope it wasn't all bad stuff, knowing Yui and all."

Tamahome laughed, "Don't worry, all the things she has had to say about you have been good."

Miaka grimaced. She hated to seem like such a bitch, especially since he wasn't even doing anything wrong. It was her friend in the wrong. But still, she was really angry this time. She'd told Yui 'no' over and over again, and yet her friend still dragged her out of her home, making her think they would have some girl time, only to find out she had set her up.

"Hey, Miaka." A teasing voice called out.

Miaka turned around to see none other than Suboshi, her best friend's boyfriend. This made it way worse. She could never get along with Suboshi because it was like he had something against her. He just loved to mess with her for no reason at all and she didn't feel he had the right to do that since they weren't close.

"Oh, Tamahome, don't worry about her bitter mood. It's not your fault, she is just cold."

"Suboshi!" Yui cried, hitting him slightly.

Miaka twitched.

"Oh, come off it, Yui, you know you set her up with him to prove she wasn't a lesbian. I say from the looks of things that I win."

_A... a... wha...? A lesbian?_ Miaka thought incredulously.

"Suboshi! I am not setting her up with Tamahome because of that! I just want her to be happy!" Yui squeaked unconvincingly.

Suboshi just snickered, "Sure."

"A what?" Miaka finally managed to yell.

Everyone's attention was now turned on her, and Tamahome looked quite uncomfortable.

"Well, Miaka, what are we suppose to think? You tell us you hate men, and you haven't even once looked at a guy!" Suboshi said.

Miaka's head started to spin, but then a thought came to her. "That's right! All men suck! They're disgusting pigs, all men are dogs, and you are a prime example!"

Yui looked at her friend's face and saw the anger and pain. "Miaka, you can't possibly mean that."

"But I do, I would rather kiss a girl, and be called a lesbian than ever having to depend on a man."

Suboshi then started laughing. "Yeah right, Miaka. You talk all tough, but deep down you probably wish some guy would pick you up! You just don't like guys because they never seem to come to you."

"I'm all talk, huh?" Miaka looked around and spotted a young girl who looked like she was a college student. She figured she would never see the girl again, so she chose her as her target. She gave Suboshi a wicked smile, walked straight up to the stranger and kissed her _right on the lips_!

As soon as she broke apart from the girl and saw the look of utter shock on her face, she felt bad for doing it to her, but it had to be done. "Don't ever say I'm all talk!" She yelled then took off, back to her home.

Yui, Suboshi, and Tamahome all stood there looking shocked beyond comprehension.

"Wha... what... just happened?" Tamahome stuttered.

Yui turned to him with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about all this. I didn't think she actually hated men that much. I was hoping she would turn out to like you."

Tamahome gave her a blank stare then looked up to see the strange girl still standing there in just as much shock as them if not more. "What do we do about her?"

Yui turned around and looked at the girl. "I guess we talk to her, and hope she doesn't try to sue or something."

"Can she do that?" Suboshi asked to no one in particular.

Yui walked up to the girl and tapped her on the shoulder. "Um... excuse me, miss."

The girl turned to look at her but didn't say anything.

"I'm really sorry about all this, you just happened to be walking around here at the wrong time today. Are you hungry? Let me buy you lunch to make up for all this."

The girl gave her a strange look, as if to say, how is a lunch suppose to make up for this? But she nodded her head and followed her to the table and chairs they had set reserved.

Yui put out her hand, "Hi, my name is Yui."

The girl took her hand, "Kourin."

"Nice to meet you, Kourin, this is my boyfriend, Suboshi, and our friend, Tamahome. The girl who kissed you was Miaka. Have a seat."

Kourin did as she was told and took a seat on the other side of the guys. Yui took a seat next to her.

"I have to say," Suboshi said, "You are pretty calm for someone who has just been kissed by the same sex."

Kourin blinked. "I guess I'm just still in shock." She didn't like him.

All three nodded in understanding.

"Are you going to be okay about all this?" Tamahome asked.

Kourin looked at him and smiled. Now that is what she called a man.

"I'm sure I will be ok." _Except that was my first kiss._ "It was just a peck on the lips, really." _Even if it was the first time a girl had ever kissed me._ "Nothing can change it now." _Though I really wish it could._

"Wow, you are really strong." Yui said, "I'd probably be freaking out if some strange girl just randomly walked up to me and kissed me on the lips!"

Kourin looked her. When she put it that way it all started to seem a lot worse.

"Um... I think I should go." She said, standing up quickly.

Yui looked at her, a little startled. "But you haven't eaten yet."

"Maybe another time."

Yui bit her lower lip. "Well, okay, just write down your name and number," she dug through her purse and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen, "And I'll call you sometime."

Kourin nodded and wrote her number down, then waved a goodbye as she hurriedly walked away.

"I think you scared her." Suboshi said.

Yui sighed, "Yeah, I guess I shouldn't have said that..."

All Tamahome could do was nod.

* * *

Miaka ran all the way to her house in tears. She couldn't believe she had just done that. She was confused, angry, and upset. But most of all, she was really embarrassed. It seemed like such a good idea at the moment, but now she might have made a horribly wrong decision. She didn't really want to be known as a lesbian just because she hated men.

Why did her friend have to be such a pain about the guy stuff? Couldn't she just leave the topic of men alone?

"Yui! Sometimes you can be such a jerk!" Miaka yelled to herself. It was a good thing no one was around or they might have called the cops on her. It wasn't every day you see a young crying girl, running blindly, screaming about someone being a jerk.

* * *

To be continued...


	2. Chapter Two

Welcome to chapter two. If you made it this far then that means I passed your test of approval. In case you were wondering in my story Miaka is 16 and Nuriko is 19. Anyway, I don't have much else to say, so continue on with the story!

Once again, I bow to the mighty power of my beta reader, myStiCaLYia.

**Man: I would go to the end of the world for you.**

**Woman: Yes, but would you stay there?**

Author - Ongaku  
Rating - T  
Genre - Comedy and Romance! This is AU! No fairy tale book!  
Summary - Miaka is a hard-core man hater. To prove that she doesn't need a man, she tells her friends that she would rather kiss a girl before ever depending on a man. They laugh at her until she finds some random girl and kisses her right on the lips! No, this is not Yuri so don't worry. Pairings M/N!

**I Hate Men**

**Chapter 2**

* * *

SLAM!

Miaka groggily opened her eyes and stared at her now-smashed alarm clock. "Not again!" She whined, "Now I have to get another one!" She really needed to get some self-control for that temper of hers, or she was going to end up buying a new clock every day. Not like it was the clock's fault anyway, it was the stupid school and the early mornings.

Pulling herself out of bed, Miaka shuddered as the chilling air brushed over her body. "I hate mornings." She mumbled.

But not only was it a morning, it just happened to be a dreaded Monday.

Miaka quickly got dressed and rushed downstairs. Today she would have a lot of explaining to do. Keisuke was already gone as usual so that made it easier for her. She didn't feel like explaining to him why she had come home crying the other day.

"Hello, Mom!"

Miaka's mother was sitting at the dinning room table, shuffling through some papers and drinking coffee. "Oh, hello, dear."

"Good day at work yesterday?" Miaka asked while heading to the fridge to get out the milk.

"It was a lot easier since some of the patients were gone."

"That's good, I thought it must have been an easier day because you're up awfully early. Especially for you." Miaka had her bowl of cereal all made and was starting to scarf it down.

"Actually Miaka, I have something to tell you."

Miaka swallowed quickly and looked at her mother in the face.

"I'm planning on working the night shift instead. It would be awkward at first, since this time you won't have a father at home, but the night shift is a lot easier and my sleeping order is all messed up anyway, so I thought it would be the better choice."

Miaka shrugged, "Sounds like a good idea to me." It's not like it would be much different, she thought. "If you think it would work out much better for you, then go for it." Smiling, Miaka then ate the rest of her cereal quickly and rushed off to put the dish in the sink. "I should be going to school now, so see you later, Mom!"

Miaka's mother didn't even look up from her papers, "Okay, dear, bye."

With that, Miaka was out the door and well on her way to school, also known as doom.

* * *

Walking through the school ground, Miaka was unaware that she was being followed. Sighing heavily she said to herself, "School... I hate it." Then made her way to the shoe racks.

As she was putting up her shoes some random guy made a cat call to her. "Hey, baby, why don't you come over here?"

Miaka slammed her locker door shut and continued walking as if she heard nothing. "Stupid men, I hate them all."

"Sounds to me that you hate a lot."

Surprised by the sudden voice being directed at her she spun around to meet face to face with Suboshi. _Uh-oh..._ she immediately thought.

"Maybe I do, and guess what? You're at the top of the list!"

Suboshi only smiled. "Is that a hate list or a hit list?"

"There's no difference in my book." Miaka simply stated.

"I thought so." Suboshi took a step closer to Miaka making her step back. Realizing this, Suboshi laughed out loud. "I'm not going to attack you Miaka, stop backing away."

Embarrassed Miaka stuttered, "I—I—I wasn't backing away! I was just... just... doing this!" With that she demonstrated her movement of rocking back and forth with her right foot in front and her left foot in back.

"Right..." Suboshi replied but didn't sound convinced at all. "Anyway, you have a little something on your face that you might want to wipe off. And Yui said she wanted to talk to you before school started. She tried to get your attention back outside but—as usual—you were in one of your dazed state of minds."

Miaka decided to ignore his rude comments and asked, "How is your brother?"

Suboshi looked a little surprised at first but that didn't last long. "He is much better, I think he'll be out of the hospital soon."

Miaka smiled, making Suboshi look surprised once again. "That's good to hear, tell him I wish him well." Quickly, Miaka turned away from Suboshi and made her way back outside to find Yui. _One down, one more to go._ Miaka thought slyly. It was easy getting Suboshi to forget certain topics. All she had to do was bring up his brother. Though she truly was concerned about his brother because, unlike Suboshi, Amiboshi was really kind and undeserving of the pain he was in. It was just like him to try and help some poor girl out from being raped by a couple of men. Even though Amiboshi won the fight it didn't leave him unharmed.

Spotting Yui, Miaka took a deep breath and walked up to her.

"Yui?"

Hearing her name, Yui turned around to greet Miaka. "Hi Miaka."

Miaka winced at the dead tone in her voice. "You wanted to speak to me?"

"Yeah... Miaka I'm worried about you. You aren't seriously becoming a...a...a..."

"Lesbian?" Miaka said cutting her off. "Don't be silly, I don't even know what came over me yesterday. I guess I was just so mad that my brain shut off any rational thoughts."

Yui sighed in relief. "I'm glad, but Miaka, I really think you should apologize to that girl, and to Tamahome, too."

Miaka lowered her head in shame. "Yeah, I know, but I don't even know that girl's name. How am I supposed to do that?"

Yui rustled through her backpack and pulled out a yellow piece of paper. Curious, Miaka craned her neck to see what it was. She shouldn't have bothered. The next moment, Yui was shoving it in her face. "Look, I specially got her number for you. I told her it was so that I could treat her for lunch sometime as a sort of apology, but I think you should go too. I called her last night to make arrangements so you better come with me after school."

"Okay, thank you, Yui."

Yui was about to leave when she stopped herself to say a few more things. "Oh, and Miaka, her name is Kourin. Also, Tamahome will be there as well. Two birds with one stone."

Miaka only nodded and started to follow Yui, who was now heading towards class.

* * *

The school hours of the day seemed even longer than usual to Miaka. She was very nervous about meeting with the two people she was really rude to who had done nothing to her. Not only that, but Suboshi was probably going to come too, and make things a lot worse. Finally, the last bell of the day rang. The scraping of chairs on the tiled floors could be heard all over as well as the steps and chatter of many kids happy that classes were over.

Grabbing her books, Miaka stuffed them into her backpack and rushed her way to the front gate of the school. Yui was already there with Suboshi right next to her.

Miaka waved cheerfully even though her emotions inside were anything BUT cheerful. "Hey, I got here as fast as I could."

"Don't worry, you actually made it on time for once." Yui replied.

That made Suboshi snort and Yui glare. "You be nice now. Miaka doesn't need you to be so mean when she has a lot of apologizing to look forward to."

Suboshi gave Yui a strange look after she said that and then turned to look at Miaka. He opened his mouth and then closed it suddenly.

Yui smiled. "Are you ready, Miaka?"

Miaka could only nod. If Yui didn't know any better, she'd think that a dark cloud should be hovering over Miaka right now. "Don't look so down Miaka, It's not a death sentence. You'll be fine."

"You're right Yui, let's get going. The sooner we get there the faster I can get this over with."

Yui took Miaka's hand and started to lead the way. At that time Miaka took the chance to look at Suboshi again. He wasn't looking in her direction so he had no idea he was being examined. It was really surprising how he didn't say anything. Yui's threats and commands never stopped him before, so why now? She wondered if he was sick and felt a little worried, because, even though he was a jerk most of the time, it didn't prove that he was pure evil... but right now she decided it was not the time to ask him anything. Besides, he didn't even look like he wanted to talk.

It wasn't long before they had reached their destination. Miaka stayed behind Yui as she waved Kourin and Tamahome over. She looked at Kourin a bit and noticed how she seemed to like Tamahome. She was glad that someone was showing interest in him since she probably brought his self-esteem down just a little with her actions.

"Hey Kourin, Tamahome! How are you guys doing?" Yui asked as they approached them.

Tamahome was just a cheery as the last time Miaka had seen him. "I'm doing good, you?"

"Oh, just fine thanks."

Miaka noticed how Kourin didn't ever say how she was. In fact she noticed that instead Kourin was more focused on her standing behind Yui.

"You!" She spat. "What is she doing here?"

Yui flinched as well as Miaka. Stepping out from behind Yui, Miaka bowed really low and rushed out her apology. "I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry! I know what I did was really wrong and rude. If there is anything I can do to make it up to you, please, please, let me know."

"Make it up to me? There is nothing you can to do make it up to me. The only thing I want you to do is go away and never show your face to me again." Kourin was glaring intently at Miaka now.

Miaka's eyes began to sting. "I'm...I'm sorry." Her voice was a little shaky. "I understand. I will leave now." Then Miaka turned to Tamahome and bowed slightly. "I'm sorry to have been so rude to you yesterday. You're a really nice person to have put up with me."

Kourin watched Miaka bow to Tamahome and actually started to feel bad for the harsh words she had used. She looked at Suboshi and noticed him glaring at her intently. She knew she didn't like him, and it was obvious he didn't seem to like her much either. Just when Miaka was about to leave, Kourin reached out and grabbed her arm. "Wait a minute."

Miaka stopped but didn't turn to look at her. Irritated a bit by that, Kourin took a deep breath. "Maybe there is something you can do to make it up to me."

Slowly Miaka turned to her and now she understood why she didn't earlier. Tear streaks were all over her face and her eyes were glossy with the unshed ones. Funny how she didn't notice it, the girl was really good at crying quietly and for some reason that disturbed her even more. "Yes?" she asked softly.

"Look, the kiss was meaningless and I hardly even felt it." Kourin lied. "You didn't mean any huge harm by it and you are feeling pretty guilty about it now. So let's move on and let it be in the past. I just moved here, actually, and I need help in moving all my things into my new apartment, can you deal with that?"

A warm smile was now spreading across Miaka's face. She nodded happily. "Yes! I mean, of course I would be more than happy to help."

Something about this girl started to interest Kourin, and even though she knew it would probably be nothing more than trouble she was curious to see how this 'helping' out ended up. "Okay, then." She took out a paper and pen from her purse and wrote out her address. "Here is my apartment address and number, please come by sometime tomorrow after four o'clock."

Miaka took the paper from Kourin's hand and nodded. "Understood!"

"Good." Kourin then turned to Yui, "Now, let's eat! I'm starving!"

* * *

Kourin walked into her empty apartment and headed straight for the shower. Her day had been long and hectic, so a nice hot shower sounded real good, but right before she could make it to the bathroom, she looked at the many boxes pilled up in the living room. Walking up to them, she read the little markings the movers had written, bold letters read, Mr. Nuriko Ryuuen Chou.

"Shit!" Kourin cursed under his breath. "I got to get rid of this to keep them from finding out that I'm actually a guy!"

That night Kourin, or rather, Nuriko, spent the entire time marking out the names on the boxes with a permanent black marker.

* * *

To be Continued...


	3. Chapter Three

Yay! Chapter 3 finally! Oh and you might have noticed the little man against woman things I post on each chapter. I will do it for all my chapters in this fic. It's just for fun so guys don't be offended. It's just a joke, right?

I think I finally decided how this story is going to go. Be prepared for love triangles and lots and lots of drama and angst!

Also, I no longer have a beta reader so sorry if there are mistakes.

And, I hope to keep updating this every week if not every other week until it is finished. I'm so sorry for the long long long long wait.

**[Man: Haven't I seen you someplace before?  
Woman: Yeah, that's why I don't go there anymore.]**

**Author** - Ongaku**  
Rating** - T**  
Genre** - Drama and Romance! This is AU! No fairy tale book!**  
Summary** - Miaka is a hardcore man hater. To prove that she doesn't need a man, she tells her friends that she would rather kiss a girl before ever depending on a man. They laugh at her until she finds some random girl and kisses her right on the lips! No, this is not Yuri so don't worry. Pairings M/N!

**Disclaimer**: -Yeah, I don't own it.

* * *

**I Hate Men**

**Chapter 3**

Miaka squirmed impatiently in her school desk once again. She kept thinking about what it was going to be like helping out Kourin. She hoped that she and Kourin would become good friends and she was really glad that Kourin was even letting her make up the awful mistake of kissing her. "Come on, come on" she mumbled under her breath, but it didn't go unheard by a certain someone.

Of course Miaka was too much in her own world to notice that she was being watched or ease dropped on. Finally the bell rang so Miaka grabbed her things and rushed out of the class, still oblivious to the person watching her.

It was only 2:45 but Miaka was restless, even though Kourin had told her to come after 4:00. She just couldn't help but to go on ahead and make her way to Kourin's house. _Besides_, Miaka thought, _If she isn't there I can just wait patiently outside_. It didn't take long for Miaka to reach Kourin's apartment and just as expected, she wasn't there yet.

Miaka sighed and took a seat on one of the steps. She knew it was stupid of her for coming so early but she just couldn't help it, for some reason the thought of going home to those empty rooms brought shivers up and down her spine. After a few minutes of sitting there, the warm sunshine on her skin was starting to make her drowsy, her eyes slowly began to close and before she knew it she was asleep.

She dreamt unpleasant dreams as usual. Dreams that would make her break out in a cold sweat. Tears where starting to leek from her closed sleeping eyes as she mumbled a few incoherent words, but as soon as it started it had ended and Miaka was placed back into a dreamless sleep.

After awhile Miaka eyes fluttered open when she felt something was different. Right away she noticed it was because the sun wasn't shining on her anymore. In fact someone was standing in front of her blocking all the sunlight.

"Who are you?" asked a sort of rough and masculine voice.

Miaka froze. 'What time is it' she thought, 'how long have I been asleep?'

"Hey, I asked you a question."

But Miaka wouldn't answer, instead she tried backing up but it was actually a pathetic attempt since the wall was just a few feet behind her.

"Hey don't back away from me. Hold on there a minute." The unknown guy said as he reached out to stop her.

"Don't touch me!" Miaka screamed and smacked him in the face.

It was quiet for a bit and Miaka dared not to open her eyes. She could feel her hand throb and suddenly started to be overcome with fear. She had just hit a strange guy, a guy who would have way more power than her. What if she made him really mad now, enough to make him want to hurt her?

"Miaka?" came a familiar voice.

Miaka opened her eyes slightly too see the person who just called her name.

"Miaka, is that you?"

When she was able to get a good look she noticed it was Kourin and sighed in great relief. She looked around and saw the guy was still there. He was holding his face and looking really confused.

"What are you doing here?" Kourin started, "You're really early. Did I tell you the wrong time?"

Finally registering what was going on she quickly stood up and began to explain. "Oh no, you told me the right time. I just got here a little too early and – uh - well I guess I shouldn't have."

"It doesn't really matter, but you know that is kind of dangerous to just sit out here like that."

Miaka scratched the back of her head nervously, "Heh, I guess you are right. Sorry."

Kourin just sighed, "There is nothing to be sorry about."

That was when the other guy spoke up. "Yes there is! OOWW, why did she hit me? That's why I hate being around women."

Miaka took a good look at the guy; he had very bright orange hair and yellow eyes. His appearance gave a sort of tough guy look to him but there was something else, an almost childlikeness in him.

"Miaka, this is Tasuki. He is here to help as well." Kourin said with a little smirk on her face.

"Oh!" Miaka exclaim and made a slight bow. "I just can't meet anyone the right way these days. I'm very sorry to have hit you."

Tasuki blinked.

Kourin laughed. "You got that right Miaka, but all is well. You don't have to worry about Tasuki being angry for to long, he is actually a big softy."

"Hey! Don't tell her that!"

Miaka giggled at the little antics between the two friends. Then a question came to her. "Are you guys, dating?"

Tasuki nearly hit the floor at that. "Are you crazy, just because I said I didn't like women doesn't mean I like m…"

"Of course not Miaka, I have better taste then that." Kourin said, interrupting Tasuki in his sentence and glaring intently at him.

Then it dawned on Tasuki. "Oh! I get it! She doesn't know you're not a…" At that Kourin hit him over the head, knocking him down to the ground.

"Um-" Miaka started worriedly. "Is he going to be okay?"

Kourin started to open the door to her home. "He will be just fine, trust me. He had that coming for a long time now."

Miaka just blinked a few times before she shrugged it off and followed Kourin inside. "Wow." Miaka started, "It's so… bare in here."

Kourin rolled her eyes. "That's why you're here, remember?"

"And me," came a voice from behind. "I don't get it Nu… Kourin. You didn't tell me you were going to invite a girl to help."

"That's because I didn't feel there was a need to, but I guess I was wrong."

Miaka just stared at the two as they talked. She felt a little out of place.

* * *

About three hours later a few awkward moments between Miaka and Tasuki and a few glances between Kourin and Miaka the day was coming to a close. They had gotten a lot done but there was still plenty more to finish.

Miaka stood up from her place on the floor and stretched out her arms. It was a little strange hanging out with people she didn't really know but it was also a nice change of pace.

"Miaka?"

Miaka turned to look at Kourin, she was holding a soda. Taking is with thanks then cracked it open and took a big swig.

"Ahhh, that is much better."

Kourin smiled at Miaka and Miaka couldn't help but smile back.

"Thanks for being such a big help today. I'm sorry we couldn't really talk."

Miaka took another swig of her drink and tried her hardest not to burp, Root Beer always seemed to do that to her. "Not at all, I'm just glad I could be of any help."

That's when Tasuki entered the room. "Hey, what do you want me to do with these?"

Kourin's eyes bugged. "Tasuki you idiot!" she rushed over and closed the box that he was holding. "Don't worry about those. I will do them later on by myself."

Miaka looked on with curiosity but couldn't see a thing. It was then she decided it was probably something personal and figured it was best not to ask since she had finally gotten on her good side.

"Well it is getting late so I better head home. I don't want to have to walk in the dark. Would you like me to come back tomorrow to help you finish up?" Miaka tried not to look desperate but she really did enjoy being away from home.

"No, you don't need to stop by tomorrow. I got it covered from here."

Kourin saw the falter in Miaka's smile, "But, If you like, we can meet up for food and drinks when you get out of school."

"HAHA! Sounds like a date." Tasuki snorted.

Miaka's face turned red.

"What did a say about tact earlier?" Kourin shoved him in the gut with her elbow, _hard_.

Tasuki held on to his stomach and tried to ride it out. "Screw you manly chick."

Miaka tried to hide the smile on her lips. They acted so funny. She was also amazed by how strong Kourin seemed to be. Whenever she would try to get something heavy Tasuki or Kourin would run over to help and sometimes take over. It was a little strange. She didn't feel like she was that out of shape, so why was she so much stronger than her?

When she heard Tasuki's comment she figured it must be something she got teased for a lot and guessed it had to be that she worked out a lot.

"That would be great, Kourin."

"Tasuki, why don't you walk Miaka to the station?" Kourin gave Tasuki a push towards the door.

Grumbling, Tasuki opened the door and waited for Miaka to follow. "Well, are you coming or not?"

Miaka took a glance at Kourin and saw her nod. It was enough for her to trust him so she waved and bolted out the door, Tasuki close behind.

* * *

"So- how did you two meet?"

Miaka jumped when Tatsuki suddenly spoke. She wasn't expecting him to make any conversation with her. She felt really nervous but did her best to not let it show.

"Um, I violated her."

Tatsuki stopped in his tracks and looked at her with shock. "What is that suppose to mean?"

Miaka put her head down in shame. "I kissed her without warning."

Tatsuki started to laugh.

Miaka didn't understand what was so funny but she continued walking, him following close behind.

"I don't think you need to worry about it too much but if you don't mind me asking, are you a lesbian or something?"

Miaka shook her head back and forth. "No, I was just mad at some friends and well, I was trying to make a stupid point about not needing a guy and one thing lead to another…"

Tatsuki kept laughing and Miaka was starting to get a little annoyed.

"Why is this so funny?"

"It's nothing it is just- I have known her for a long time, ever since we were kids. It's not that I'm laughing at you. I'm laughing more at her."

Miaka didn't bother to say anymore to him after that. They had made it to the train station after all. They waved bye to each other and Miaka was glad to get some much needed space from him. She was sure he was a good guy but she was still not ready to be alone for long with one.

* * *

When Miaka got home it wasn't ten minutes later when she got a phone call.

"Hello."

"Miaka?"

"Oh hey Yui." Miaka wanted to continue being mad at her best friend but she was also thankful for her for helping her get to apologize to Kourin.

"How did the moving thing go?"

Miaka smiled to herself and felt relieved. She was starting to think that Yui didn't really care for her all that much anymore but this phone call made all those worries go out the window.

"It went really well actually. We are planning to meet up for dinner tomorrow."

"Oh really? That's nice."

Miaka could have sworn she heard something in her words but she let it go. They continued to talk to each for about an hour, talking about their days and other mundane details until Miaka started to feel sleepy. They said their goodbyes and Miaka went about her nightly ritual, glad to know she had survived another day.

* * *

**To Be Continued.**


	4. Chapter Four

I'm – somehow – going to put all the Suzaku seven in this story, though most of them will have really minor roles. I good deal of the Seiryuu seven will be in it as well, but some of them will only be named, not ever actually in the story.

It's good to finally be getting this story out and finished. Sorry for so much dead time again.

Once again, I don't have a beta reader anymore so excuse any mistakes.

**[Male: I would die for you...  
Female: Prove it]**

**Author** - Ongaku**  
Rating** - T**  
Genre** - Drama and Romance! This is AU! No fairy tale book!**  
Summary** - Miaka is a hardcore man hater. To prove that she doesn't need a man, she tells her friends that she would rather kiss a girl before ever depending on a man. They laugh at her until she finds some random girl and kisses her right on the lips! No, this is not Yuri so don't worry. Pairings M/N!

**Disclaimer**: -Yeah, I don't own it.

* * *

**I Hate Men**

**Chapter 4**

When Miaka got up the next morning she got a good scolding from her mother.

"Where were you yesterday?"

Miaka gulped when she saw her mother standing in the hallway as soon as she crawled out of bed. She really wasn't ready to be fighting so early in the morning.

"I was helping a friend move their stuff into a new home."

Her mother glared at her, as if trying to figure out if she was telling the truth or not. Little did she know that Miaka was only telling a half truth.

"Did you forget about your session on purpose or accident?"

Miaka didn't answer her mother. She was always a terrible liar so she knew she wouldn't be able to say she had forgotten.

"Miaka, I don't pay for you to go to this thing for fun. You know how much I struggle with money, the least you could do is attend."

Miaka was starting to get annoyed now. She never asked to go to a psychiatrist in the first place. It was all her mother's idea. She hated the psychiatrist. If it was a nice woman she might have been more incline to go but it was like God was punishing her over and over with giving her some big burly man. She would never open up to him or get comfortable.

"Fine! Then cancel my appointments forever! I never wanted to go in the first place."

Miaka's mother's face got red instantly with anger.

"Don't be ungrateful! This is for your own good."

At this, Miaka lost it completely. "How do you know it is for my own good? You are just throwing my problems into a corner and hoping it will get solved on its own. You know nothing about me or my life since all you do is work and sit on the couch and drink!"

Miaka would have kept on going but her mother had slapped her across the face. Tears began to fall from her eyes freely now.

Miaka's mother looked at her hand and then back at her face, shocked at what she had just done. "Uh… Oh Miaka, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me!" She tried to reach out for her to see if she was okay but Miaka slapped her hand away and glared through her tears.

"Don't touch me you drunkard." Then she stomped away from her mother to get ready for school. She was not in the mood for it but she would have rather been in a prison cell then have to spend another minute of her time with her mother.

* * *

"Oh my God! What happened to your face, Miaka?"

Yui was sitting at one of the lunch tables with her boyfriend – Suboshi – as usual. She had immediately gotten up from her seat when she saw Miaka with a swollen lip and cheek.

Miaka wanted to smile at her friend but she knew it would probably hurt too much. She knew that her mother had hit her pretty hard but she never realized just how strong she could be. It made her even angrier when she realized she didn't seem to have even tried to hold back.

"I got into a fight with my mother, apparently she didn't approve of me talking back this time." She took a peak over at Suboshi and saw him flinch.

"Damn, your mother is strong." Yui commented.

"Tell me about it. I hope most of the swelling goes down before school is over."

Yui gave her a puzzled look at first until she realized why. "Oh- because you are meeting Kourin again?"

Miaka just nodded her head. She missed the strange look in Yui's eyes when she said that.

"Well, the fight sure does explain why you are here early for a change!" Suboshi said with a laughing tone.

Normally him saying something like that would have pissed her off even more but she got the feeling he was just trying to lighten the mood this time. "Yeah, maybe I should get in a fight with her every day. Lord knows my attendance could use the help."

They all started to laugh and Miaka was glad they never asked her what the fight was about. None of her friends knew she was seeing a psychiatrist.

She wasn't ashamed of it but she just didn't want them to ask her why she was seeing one. She wasn't sure she was ready to share such information with them. It was information that had torn her family apart and made things awkward and bad. She wanted to keep some form of normalcy alive in her school life.

The bells rang around the school not to shortly after Miaka had gotten there, signaling for all the kids to get to class. Miaka waved bye to her friend and told them they would meet up at lunch for some fast food. Yui smiled brightly when she said that and waved back in return.

* * *

Kourin, or rather, Nuriko stared at the last of his boxes and sighed. He didn't have any morning classes today so he figured he would finish up his more personal things. The things that Tatsuki almost pulled out in front of Miaka would have had her asking many questions.

They were boy's clothes and accessories. He could have told a lie and said they belonged to an ex-boyfriend but that would have been a little weird since he took it with him in the move. He didn't want to have to pretend he had a boyfriend either because he really did like someone.

The thing was, most of the time he always dressed in women's clothes but from time to time he had to dress in boy's clothes. It usually came to his family or more professional matters. He hated it too. After wearing dresses for so long, wearing mans clothes just wasn't comfortable for him anymore.

While he was putting up some of his boxers he saw a small box inside and halted. He stared down at the words on top of it which read, Kourin's stuff. It was so quiet that Nuriko could hear his own heart beat.

He couldn't believe - after all these years - he was still so deeply affected by that box. Tatsuki had always told him he was a little strange for telling people that his name was Kourin but he never said much else than that.

He knew better, it was such a sensitive subject after all.

He grabbed the box and buried it underneath all his sock and boxers. He didn't feel like opening it today. He wanted to stay in a good mood.

He had finally made a new friend, and it was a girl. He never had many friends. He really liked Tatsuki but Tatsuki wasn't really someone you could talk heart to heart with, _ever_. He had always needed someone like Miaka.

He would probably never forget how they met but that memory was already starting to seem more and more funny and less, traumatizing. He wondered if it was because he was actually a guy and could get over something like that so easily or if he was just weird in general. It was hard to say until he found out more about Miaka. He had never asked her if she had kissed people before or not.

She left a strange impression on him, but it intrigued him. She seemed so sweet and warm but there was something more, something dark and broken. He really wanted to know what it was for some reason.

Perhaps he felt he had found a kindred soul in her because of his dark past as well.

Maybe she could be the one he could talk to about it, and hopefully be the one she will talk to her about her troubles.

He smiled to himself. Yeah, he had been living as a girl for a long time now. His mind was starting to act completely like one.

Well, first things first, he was going to have to think of something fun to do and talk with her for dinner. He didn't want them to end up awkward.

At least she had no idea he was actually a male.

* * *

"Class, we have a new student today." The teacher said as she walked in.

Right away everyone started to whisper wondering who could be transferring in at such a time. The guys were hoping for a beauty while the girls were wanted a hunk. Miaka was one of the few who just didn't care.

However, to everyone's surprise the new person was neither a beauty nor a hunk. He was actually an adorable young boy. He walked in, being only as tall as the podium the teacher was standing behind and looking nervous from head to toe.

Miaka looked on with interest now. The boy didn't look much older than 11 or 12 and yet here he was in her junior class.

The whispering got even louder and Miaka turned to see how rude everyone was being. She wanted to yell at them to shut up, knowing the young boy was nervous, but knew that she would never have the balls to actually do it.

"Alright class, please be quiet. This is Doukon Ou-san and he is a bit of a prodigy. He is only 11 years old but he is well beyond his years in intelligence. They decided to let him skip a few grades, obviously. Please be kind to him and show him a warm welcome."

The teacher turned to the young boy, "Would you like to say anything more?"

The boy cleared his throat and nodded his head yes. "My name is Doukon Ou-san but please call me Chiriko. I hope to get along well with everyone."

Miaka wondered why he would want to be called something so different from his original name but figured he had a good reason. She was strangely interested in him and didn't know why.

"Alright Chiriko, please take your seat next to Yuki-san." She pointed in Miaka direction, "Yuki-san, can you please raise your hand."

Miaka lifted her hand in the air and smiled at him.

Chiriko smiled back at her and made his way through the room to take his place. As soon as he sat down Miaka turned to him to introduce herself. "Hello, my name is Yuki, Miaka. If you ever have any questions or need any help just ask me though when it comes to anything with class work I might not be any help."

She laughed but felt a little stupid admitting that to him.

"Thank you very much Yuuki-san."

Miaka waved her hand back and forth. "Please, call me Miaka."

He nodded his head and then the rest of the day was spent learning their lessons.

As soon as the bell rang, indicating lunch, his desk was swarming with many people, wanting to ask him all sorts of questions.

Miaka was a bit disappointed but she figured they would get tired of it soon and then she could get to know him better to become friends. She wanted to keep an eye out for him to keep him from getting used or bullied in the school. She could only guess just how scary it would be to attend a class with kids that were so much older than her.

Plus the fact that he had to be really smart which would make the really dumb kids feel inferior.

If there was one thing Miaka was good at handling was bullies. She had gotten into plenty of fights protecting her friend – Yui – in the past.

She grabbed her things and made her way outside, to meet with said friend. Her face swelling had gown down a lot because the teacher had sent her to get an ice pack at the nurses' station but she still had a visible bruise.

It was better than nothing though. At least she didn't feel anymore pain.

* * *

The rest of the school day had gone by without much to it. In fact it was a very basic day except for her morning with her mom and the new student. She groaned at the thought of all the homework she had to do for her math class and wished it has never been invented.

She was in high spirits though because she would be meeting Kourin now and she couldn't wait to get to gossip with her about her day. She made her way to the trains to get to Kourin's house. Kourin had told her to just meet her there and from there they would figure out where to go.

Miaka was actually kind of surprised by how comfortable she was already starting to feel around Kourin. She was usually always an upbeat person and friendly to anyone, except recently, but she still would take some time to get completely use to someone. She wanted this friendship to work out though, she still felt terrible for how they first met and would do all that she could to make up for it.

The train ride wasn't very long because Kourin lived close to a college campus that most of her classmates attended after High School. It was a good school but Miaka's mother had wanted her to attend a college that was even harder to get into. She hated that but figured she would at least try since she disappointed her with her grades to get into a more prestigious high school.

Of course she had a really good reason for not making it to Jonan.

Once the train made a complete stop Miaka skipped off it with a smile on her face. The people around her stared at her in annoyance but Miaka really didn't care. She was going to try and stay in a good mood for as long as she could.

When she turned the corner of the station she wished she had been paying more attention because she bumped into another person. She went falling back, landing on her butt and wincing in pain. She looked up to start to apologize but stopped when she saw who she had run into.

The man was very tall and very buff. He looked like a foreigner with his long blonde hair and blue eyes. He stared down at her with cold eyes and Miaka froze in terror.

"What a stupid child. You should really watch where you are going."

At the sound of the voice Miaka finally noticed the other person there. Hanging on to his arm was a big busted woman dressed in clothes that Miaka thought was very daring. The two of them seemed to suit each other though.

She stood back up, dusting off her bottom and checking to see if the had any injuries on her legs. When she saw there was none she bowed her head and apologized, even though she was anything but sorry. She was the only one who got hurt anyway.

Then she took off in a sprint, wanting to get to Kourin's house as quickly as possible now.

When she got there she took a few deep breaths, trying to regain her composure. She didn't want Kourin to wonder about her anymore than she probably already did.

She rang the doorbell and waited.

Right away Kourin was at the door and letting her in. She offered Miaka a drink but Miaka refused because she knew she would be drinking a lot wherever they went to eat.

"So, have you thought about what you want to eat?" Kourin asked her as she grabbed her purse and finished getting ready.

"Any fast food place is good for me. I will leave it up to you."

Kourin seemed to be thinking this over for a bit before she said- "Okay, let's go to the new burger joint that opened up."

Miaka nodded her head in agreement, she was curious about that place, "Sounds good to me."

"Then shall we head on out? I'm pretty hungry."

"Yes, lets!"

* * *

After they ordered their food and took their seat at a table they began to make more small talk. On the way there Miaka listened to Kourin tell her about her day without interrupting, but it seemed that Kourin was now ready to listen to Miaka.

"So, what is with the bruise?"

Miaka was afraid he would notice. It wasn't a super big thing but it was there and in certain lighting it looked worse than it was.

"I'm really clumsy. I made a fool of myself today at school."

Kourin looked at her as if she didn't believe that but didn't ask any more. Miaka liked her for that. It wasn't often when people would let something like that drop. She wouldn't have minded telling her but they barely new each other, she didn't want to dump any of her troubles on her so soon.

"Oh, we got a new student today." Miaka said with a smile. She remembered the boy and got excited about it again.

"Oh? I take it the new student is good news for you?"

Miaka nodded her head. "Yeah, mostly because it was interesting this time - I like when something new happens, it keeps me from being so bored."

Kourin took a sip of her soda before speaking again. "I can understand that. It is never any good if your days always turn out so monotonous."

"Exactly!" Miaka said happily. "Anyway, the new student is actually only 11 years old. He seems to be a genius."

"Oh wow, that is pretty interesting. It's not every day you get to know someone like that."

Right when Miaka was going to say more their number was called and Kourin went to go get it.

Miaka was having so much fun and they weren't even doing all that much. She was starting to feel like her old self a bit, chatting like she hadn't a care in the world.

When Kourin brought back the food Miaka could feel her stomach growling. She had eaten lunch not to long ago but she never ate enough for lunch that her stomach would have liked. It was something her friend – Yui – would always tease her about- her endless black hole of a stomach.

She grabbed for her food and began to take big bites, getting a wide eyed expression on Kourin's face.

She swallowed and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "Sorry about that, I have a bit of an appetite."

Instead of getting a brush off for her apology Kourin just started to laugh.

Miaka was a little confused.

"I'm sorry, I was just surprised. It's good to see a young girl have such a good appetite. I would have never guessed such a thing with how small you are." She then began to eat her own food with a smirk.

Miaka began to eat again as well. They talked a bit longer in between bites about random and mundane things and once they were done they said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, but before they did they exchanged cell phone numbers.

It wouldn't be the last time they would hang out.

* * *

**To be continued. **


	5. Chapter Five

It really feels good to finally get this story written. I hope I can complete it quickly since I feel so bad for putting it off for so long. However, if I don't have any signs of people reading it anymore I will probably quit after chapter 6.

**[Male: So what do you do for a living?  
Female: Female impersonator.]**

**Author** - Ongaku**  
Rating** - T**  
Genre** - Drama and Romance! This is AU! No fairy tale book!

**Summary** - Miaka is a hardcore man hater. To prove that she doesn't need a man, she tells her friends that she would rather kiss a girl before ever depending on a man. They laugh at her until she finds some random girl and kisses her right on the lips! No, this is not Yuri so don't worry. Pairings M/N!

**Disclaimer**: -Yeah, I don't own it.

* * *

**I Hate Men**

**Chapter 5**

"Why did you skip our meeting last week?"

Miaka sat in a big leather chair with a frown on her face. A week had gone by and this time she couldn't get out of attending her session. Her mother pretty much stayed away from her the rest of the week, not apologizing anymore but not making any effort to show that she actually cared.

Miaka was angry at her for acting so cowardly despite the fact that she didn't want to fight with her again.

She never met with Kourin again that week, which was disappointing as well but she did go out with her friend Yui just to shop and look around. That was pretty fun, especially since Suboshi wasn't glued to her hip for once. She had asked her why he wasn't there but Yui just sort of brushed the question off, telling her they don't always spend time together.

Miaka was thinking something was up though.

"I wasn't in the mood." She finally responded to her psychiatrist.

The big man wrote some things down on a notebook on his desk as Miaka stared at his name plate. It read – Dr. Juan Myo, but Miaka always called him Mitsukake.

Despite his appearance he was a very soft spoken and gentle man, but Miaka still didn't want to be around him. She didn't hate him but she was just too uncomfortable.

"I can understand that Miaka. Would you like to explain why?"

Miaka crossed her arms over her chest. "No, not really."

He just smiled at her. "Fair enough - Is there anything you would like to talk about?"

Miaka thought about being an ass again but started to feel a little ashamed of herself. It wasn't his fault she was stuck there every day. He was just trying to make the best of it.

"I made a new friend last week."

He put his pen down and moved away from his desk, taking a chair across from her. He had his whole attention on her now. "Oh? That is great, what is he or she like?"

Miaka lifted an eyebrow at his question. She was surprised he even bothered to ask about the gender.

"She is very nice and lots of fun. I helped her move into her new apartment last week, which was why I didn't come last time." As soon as the words left her mouth Miaka immediately regretted it. She had just answered his first question of the session and wondered if he had done that on purpose or if she was just that stupid.

He didn't say anything about it, to her relief.

"That sounds real nice. How did you two meet?"

Miaka faltered, she hadn't thought that far. She really didn't want to tell him the truth so she brainstormed real fast. "I was out with some friends and I accidently bumped into her, making her drop her drink. It was pretty funny actually. We just didn't start out on good terms."

If he knew she was lying he didn't give any indication that he cared. He just continued to ask her questions about her time with her new friend and before long her session had rolled by in no time.

It was the first time she had actually had the time fly by for one of the sessions and she was amazed. She figured it was all because she was talking about her new friend but thought that was kind of funny. Still, she was really glad to be leaving already.

When she got out of the room her brother was there to take her home. She always insisted that she could take herself to and fro but after her big fight with her mother from missing a day she ended up having a babysitter again.

She knew her brother wasn't happy about it either. He would have rather been out hanging with his best friend – Tetsuya.

"Finally!" he said as she walked out.

"You didn't have to wait for me you know."

Tetsuya gave her a look down. "I had to make sure you didn't run off at any time."

Miaka pouted. "That is just rude. Once I'm here I'm not going to try and make the great escape." She started to make her way out the door, with her brother in tow. "Anyway, you can head on home without me. I have to make a stop somewhere."

"Where is that?" her brother asked with curiosity.

"None of your business - go away."

Her brother made a face but said nothing more. He waved at her and turned the other way.

Miaka waited for him to be out of sight before she headed towards her destination. She didn't want him following her. It really didn't matter but she just wanted some alone time until then. She thought about taking the train again but figured the walk would do her some good.

The weather outside was really nice today. The sun was shining brightly and there was a slight breeze. Walking in it put Miaka back into a cheery mood, which was something she needed to be in again.

When she got to her destination she stopped just outside of the tall, white, building and looked up. She hated hospitals. They always made some bad memories come flooding back but she had to come today. She had been putting it off for far too long – visiting a certain someone who had been in the hospital for a few weeks.

She made her way to the nurses' station and asked where she could find her friend. They gave her the room number and pointed her to the general direction.

She walked slowly down the sterile hallways, trying to avoid accidently peaking into any strangers' rooms. Her heart beat was thudding loudly in her chest. It seemed like hours before she finally made it to the correct room number.

The name plate read Kōtoku Bu so Miaka knew she was at the right place. The door was cracked so Miaka knocked on it softly.

"Come on in." said the young male voice on the other side.

Miaka gently pushed the door open and walked in, seeing Amiboshi laying on a bed and watching some sports on the TV. He turned the volume down when he saw her and gave his full attention to her.

"Oh Miaka! It's nice to see you."

Miaka took a seat in the chair next to his bed and smiled. "I'm sorry it took me so long to come visit." She didn't even bother to give him any excuses.

"Nonsense! The fact is that you came at all and I'm glad to see you."

Miaka just looked at his soft smile and felt at ease. He was probably one of the few guys that didn't freak her out, though she still didn't want him to touch her. Mostly because she was in fear of hitting him – which he would never deserve. He had always been polite to her and very respectful of her personal space.

"How have you been feeling? Is the recovery going well?"

Amiboshi nodded his head. "Yeah, they say I can go back to school in a week if everything goes as planned."

"That is great news. It will be nice to have you back in class with all of us. Everyone seems to really miss you."

It was quiet for awhile before Miaka decided to ask about the girl. "What about the girl you saved, is she okay?"

Amiboshi's face dropped its smile slightly at this question and Miaka wondered if she shouldn't have asked.

"Physically she is doing much better but emotionally-" he trailed off as if searching for the right words. "I just hope I can be of some help to her but right now – even though she says she is grateful to me – she doesn't seem to want me around."

Miaka didn't smile as he answered her. "I'm sure she knows in her head how much to appreciate your help. She is lucky to have someone like you care about her."

A bit of bitter bile rose up in Miaka's throat but she kept her cool and then smiled at him.

"What about you Miaka?"

Miaka rose her head up at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I just wanted to know how you have been lately."

Miaka sighed in relief when she realized he was just being polite. "Um, I have been okay. It's been kind of boring but I did make a new friend and we have a new student in our class."

Amiboshi looked at the T.V. for a split second, probably to check the score. "Oh? Tell me about the new student."

Miaka went on to tell him all about the new student and then about her new friend. Amiboshi listened to her politely but Miaka wasn't sure if he actually cared or if he was just so bored that any sort of gossip was good to him.

After about an hour of visiting him she decided he needed to get back to resting.

"I better get going so you can get your rest."

He just nodded his head. "Thanks again for stopping by."

Miaka waved at him from the door. "I enjoyed it. I will stop by again tomorrow and actually bring you something. I feel a little bad just stopping bad so randomly like this."

Just as she was about out the door Amiboshi called to her. She turned to look at him and saw the serious expression on his face.

"Miaka, are you sure everything is okay?"

Miaka's blood froze. "Don't be silly! I'm perfectly fine!" She instantly felt a little stupid for over doing it but he said nothing more and this time Miaka was out the door for good.

* * *

"That's him." Kourin said while pointed to a group of guys standing and chatting under a tree.

Miaka looked in the direction but wasn't sure which one she was pointed at. "Which one?"

Kourin looked a little flustered and embarrassed. "The one with the long brown hair, and dazzling face and-"

"Okay, I get it." Miaka laughed at her over the top description of the guy she liked. She was spending time with Kourin again but this time they were on the college campus. Miaka wanted to get to know more about Kourin so she started to ask her some questions, like who she liked.

At first Kourin didn't seem to want to answer but Miaka teased her and said that only meant she must have a deep crush on someone. Kourin seemed to be really happy to discuss it with her once she got her to jump over that hurdle.

"Isn't he just so handsome?"

Miaka could have sworn her voice just got girlier and she giggled at the thought.

"Oh yes, he is very good looking. It seems his friends are all pretty good looking too."

She looked at the guys under the tree with them, one of them had strangely colored hair but it seemed to suit him. When he turned around Miaka couldn't help but gasp a bit. He had a huge scar on his face, covering his left eye.

"What happened to him?"

Kourin stopped acting giddy when Miaka pointed that out.

"Oh that- well, I don't know all the details but apparently he was trying to help an old friend from drowning but didn't succeed. He got hurt badly in the process."

Miaka's face blanched in horror. "That is really horrible."

Kourin nodded her head.

"Oh no!"

"What is it?" Miaka said in surprise to her sudden outburst.

"They are coming this way!" She looked completely embarrassed. "Oh Miaka, what do I do?"

Miaka patted her back. "Just play it cool."

Kourin nodded her head and took a deep breath.

"Hello Kourin." The guy with long brown hair said with a smile as he casually walked up with his friend in tow.

"Hi, how's it going?"

Miaka noticed how Kourin was trying to keep a cool voice and tried to keep from laughing.

"Pretty good- can you believe what that one professor is making us do?"

"Oh I know! Does he seem to think he is the only teacher in the whole school? I don't know how I'm going to get it all done in time."

They started to laugh and Miaka just watched in silence.

"So, who is this? I have never seen her before."

Kourin went stiff but then relaxed. "She isn't a student- we are just friends hanging out for the day."

Miaka stepped up on her cue and bowed slightly. "It's nice to meet you, I'm Miaka Yuki."

"Nice to meet you too, I'm Cai Pi and this is my friend Houjin, but you can call us Hotohori and Chichiri."

Miaka bowed a bit to Chichiri and he did the same.

"So, why aren't you a student?"

Miaka began to laugh. "I'm surprised you can't tell but I'm just a high school student."

They looked at each other in shock.

"How do you two know each other then?"

Miaka and Kourin looked at each other with nervous looks.

"Ah, well I helped tutor her some."

Miaka began to laugh in a nervous manner. "Yeah! She really helped me."

"Oh, that is nice. It is good to see that tutor and student get along so well."

Miaka just nodded her head.

"Well we better be off, we haven't had dinner yet." Kourin said out of the blue.

"Ah, well we won't keep you anymore."

"It was nice meeting you too." Miaka decided to say once again. They said their goodbyes and then were on there way.

Once they were out of sight Kourin sighed in great relief.

"Phew! I thought my heart was going to explode."

Miaka started to laugh now.

"What is so funny?" Kourin look at her with a teasing hurt.

"Nothing, you are just so cute."

Kourin took this moment to blush. She had never been called that before so it was weird and almost seemed kind of wrong. She felt that Miaka was a lot cuter than her.

"Not any cuter than you."

Miaka waved her hands in protest. "No way! Don't lie."

They continued to tease and embarrassed each other on their way to their new favorite fast food joint.

Miaka was in bliss and so was Kourin. They could forget all their problems being in each other's presence.

* * *

**To Be Continued.**


End file.
